Friday, 25 May, 2012

Feeling cramped? New measurement says the universe is bigger than you thought. Meet the astronomers’ new yardstick.

Did red rain in India carry alien bacteria? One Indian scientist thinks so. Others say it was just spores of a common alga. Pay your money, take your choice!

People pray for the health of friends and family. Can science prove these prayers work? Should it try? Random, double-blind studies tread the natural-supernatural schism.

Museum returns a priceless classic vase to Italy. What’s at the root of obtaining ancient loot? Where should we draw the line? Does it make sense for big museums to keep artifacts, or should it all go back to source countries?

Korean scientist pulled off the biggest scientific fraud in memory. How did he do it? How is science supposed to prevent fraud? Why did it matter, and who loses out?

A new year is a chance to bring sanity to our medical, scientific and environmental disasters. Here’s our wish-list for a better New Year!

If (gasp!) the subject is too big for a Whyfile, hit the books. Here, we review four great science books, on evolution, environment, fighting nature, and discovering motherly love.

The solar clock doesn’t quite line up with the atomic clock. We use leap seconds to make them match. Should we dump the leap second?

Bush proposes mission to moon and Mars, but how great are the scientific payoffs of this expensive, risky adventure? Would it be smarter – and cheaper – to send robots?

This Why File surveys the latest in forensic anthropology, with a visit to the Forensic Anthropology Center at the University of Tennessee, AKA The Body Farm.